Ball caster



March s, 1938. w, H RvA-TH 2,110,269

BALL CASTER Filed Oct. 24, 1936 INVENTOR n s ATTORNEY William Hon GU72 Patented Mar. 8, 1938" UNITED STATES PATENT OFFlCE 2,110,269 BALL oAs'rEn William Horvatli, New Brunswick, N. J. Application October 24, 1936, Serial No. 107,444

3Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in a ball caster for furniture adapted to be used in the place of conventional casters.

The invention has for an object the construction of a ball caster which is characterized by a stud element for attachment on the furniture, a ball bearing socket associated with said stud element and supporting a steel ball, and a cap element for engaging over said socket and holding said ball'therein with a portion projecting from the cap element to engage against the ground or other surface.

Still further the invention proposes to adapt the ball caster for the legs of furniture and for V is disposed, so that the ball will touch the inner the bottom supporting elements of furniture or the like.

Still further the invention contemplates con structing the socket element integral with the stud element.

Another one of the objects of this invention resides in so arranging the parts that the cap'element may be screwed upon the socket element or ence will be had to the following description andaccompanying drawing, and to the appended claims in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawing forming a material part of this disclosure:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a ball caster constructed according to this invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a ball caster embodying a modification of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of a portion of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a bottom elevational view of another ball caster embodying another modification of the invention.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5.

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of a support foot for furniture provided with a ball caster construction, according to this invention.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line 8 8 of Fig. 7.

The ball caster for furniture comprises a stud element It for attachment on or to furniture and associated with a ball bearing socket II housing a steel ball I2. A cap I3 is engaged upon the socket II and is formed with an opening l3 encircling the steel ball I2 outside of a large circle thereof to hold the steel ball within the socket.

The stud element III is formed with threads Ill for threadedly engaging into the legs of furniture or other parts. The socket I I is integral with the stud element I0. It is also formed with'external threads I l'. The cap I3 is threadedly engaged on the threads I I. The socket I I is formed with asocket opening Il into which the ball l2 tion with a cap element 23. The stud element 20 is formed with threads 20 which 'threadedly engage into the leg 25 or other element of furniture. The socket 2| is formed with a socket recess I l in which the steel ball 22 is disposed.

The cap 23 comprises a disc portion 23 engaged across the bottom side of the socket 2|, and from the periphery of which there projects a plurality of holding fingers 23'. These fingers are bent over a portion of the socket element to maintain the position of the cap.- The disc portion 23 is formed with an opening 23 through which the steel ball 22 projects. This opening is smaller than a great circle of the steel ball to maintain the steel ball from falling out,

In Figs. 6 and 5 another embodiment of the invention has been disclosed in which an arrangement is provided for adapting the ball caster to hold steel balls of slightly different sizes or holding a certain steel ball with different tolerances. According to this form of the invention there is a stud element 30 to which a socket element 3| is associated. A steel ball 32 is mounted within the socket element and projects therefrom through a holding cap 33. The holding cap is formed with a central opening 33 through which the ball 32 projects. I

This central opening has a groove 35 upon its wall into which a resilient element 36 is engaged. This resilient element extends through substantially 300 so that there is an opening through which a holding wire 31, as hereinafter described, may pass. This holding wire is indicated generally by reference numeral 31. It extends outer face into which the wire 31 engages. Bet

screws II and 4| engage against the end portions of the wire 31 to hold the wire in fixed positions. These set screws are threadedly mounted through the materialof the cap element 88.. Thewir'e element 81 is iormed into a lo'o portion 81' which engages about the ball 32 at an area below a great circle thereof to hold the screws II and 4| may be momentarily loosened and the wire 31 moved so that either a thicker'or I thinner portion thereof'isdisposed within the looped portion 81' and sowthe size of the holding portion The resilient element 30 is adaptedzto. compensate for any eccentricity of the loop" portion 31' so that it is substantially ball.

The form of the invention illustrated in Figs. I and t may be applied to the cap elements shown in Figs; 2 and 4. Also. thisarrangement may be incorporated in the form of the invention shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

In Figs, '7 and 8 another embodiment of the in-" vention has been disclosed in which there is a corner piece consisting of angle shaped element 40 having arms 40' and atright angles to each other. The lower arm of the angle shape is formed with socket openings. through which steel balls .42 project. steel balls extend upwards within 43, formed in a holding element 44 attached by severalboIts I! to the of the member". These balls proiect from the bottom face of the angle member II and rest upon the ground, 7 The corner element may be used to support the corner of a piece ofiurniture or other element. Preferably. four of these corner devices are needed to support a rectangularpi'ece :of furniture. Y While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of-my invention, it is to be so understood that I do not limit myself to the prebaii from falling out of the socket element ii. The socket element is formed with a recessed portion li into which-the ball 32 engages. Theconcentric and capable 'of supporting the] cise cmstructions herein disclosed and the mm isreservedtoaiichangeaandmodiiications comingwithinthesccpeoftheinventionasdmn intheahpendedclaims.

Having thus dwcribedmy invention, what I claim'asnemanddesiretosecurebyllni States M Patent 18:-

1. Abail caster forfurniture and the like, com-'.

prising a stud element for attachment to turniture, a ball bearing socket associated therewith, a en aging in said socket, and a cap em in said socket for holding said "ball thereimsaid cap being formed with an aperture intowhichthesteeibailproiects,agroovein the adjacentfaceofsaidaperture,aresilientelement mountedwithin said groove. anda flexible wire loopedto'seat in said resilient element and itsq ds extending outwards and secured uponsaidcap. a

2. Abalicasterforfurniture andthe like, comprising a stud element for attachment to furni- Vture, a bail bearingsoeket associated therewith, asteelball'engaging' v insaidsocket,andacap enzflslngonsaidsocketforholdingsaidbalitherew in,'said cap being formed with anaperture into which thesteel ball projects, a groove in the adjacent face of said aperature, a resiiient eiement mounted within said anda flexible wireloopedto seat in said resilient element and havingits ends extending outwards and secured uponsaid cap, wire being of diflerent thicknessfromendtoendsothatasitisflxed tion will vary. I

3. Allan casterffor 'fur'niture and the like, can

longitudinally, the operative size of said loop porv asteel ball engagln'gin and acap' en ing on said socket'for holding said'ball therein, said cap being formed with an aperture into which the'steel ball projects, a groove in the adjacent face of said'aperture, a resilient element moimted within said groove, anda flexible wire looped'to seat in said resilient element andhav- .ingitsendsextendingoutwards andsecureduporr said cap, the ends r said'wire being held 'with cap.'

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